"Witches?" Xu Zhi chuckled softly to himself.
He had waited over three days—equivalent to more than three centuries in sandbox time—and finally, signs of revival were emerging from the desolate aftermath of the Great Flood. For the first time, descendants of humanity had integrated a second gene: the Eldritch Eye.
As a member of the insect race, Xu Zhi's genome contained large blank regions easily receptive to foreign DNA. Gilgamesh had incorporated termite DNA to gain incredible strength. Now these three women—dubbed the Three Witches—had absorbed the Eldritch Eye gene, granting them rudimentary psychic power.
Had the Eldritch Eye species not appeared first as the sandbox's inaugural transcendent lifeform, this path to psychic transcendence might never have been triggered. Xu Zhi grinned in delight. The spontaneous creativity of players had produced a truly unexpected evolutionary breakthrough.
Perched on his porch bench and nibbling an apple, he reflected aloud, "Solitary tinkering is slow. Collective wisdom accelerates discovery exponentially."
He understood why termite DNA was so rare: its terrifying super‑strength required enormous blank genomic real estate—far more than ordinary organisms possessed. In contrast, the Eldritch Eye gene was far smaller, increasing its chance of spontaneous emergence. Four hundred female volunteers had perished in the swamp's sacrifice, yet three transcendent survivors remained.
Still, these Witches paled in comparison to Gilgamesh. They required warriors to battle ordinary giant beasts, whereas Gilgamesh had single‑handedly dominated the world. Their psychic abilities were crude; although they had begun studying herbal lore and primitive sorcery within their tribe, progress was agonizingly slow.
Xu Zhi returned to his computer and researched meditation techniques online. Western yoga visualization and Eastern Daoist inner cultivation both trained the mind's focus and energy. If he could seed these methods into the Babylon tribe's Witch tradition, they might forge a coherent path of psychic cultivation—a true magical discipline.
But how could he meet the Three Witches? Transforming into his giant form to deliver mystical artifacts felt absurd—and possessing the ability to shrink into a tiny spore avatar offered a far more elegant solution.
At that moment, his sandbox feed flickered: a handful of hardcore players had scrambled ashore. They discovered the towering giant—Xu Zhi himself—sitting in the distance on an enormous wooden chair, thoughtfully eating an apple.
"This sandbox game is insane. We're literally evolving spores in a giant's backyard. Are we supposed to fight him?"
A cluster of grotesque player-creatures whispered, awed by the sandbox's boundless freedom.
"He's like Pangu from myth!""We evolve to challenge him?""Quiet—he can't see us. We're like ants.""Stay hidden. One misstep and we get crushed."
Xu Zhi observed their furtive antics with bemusement. They treated him as a final boss to be analyzed and outsmarted.
A knock sounded at his door—Chen Xi delivering another meal. "I'll deal with them later. Time to eat," Xu Zhi murmured, rising to answer.
Suddenly, distant shouts erupted from the sandbox chat:
"Earthquake?! No—it's him moving!""Run! Hide and evolve slowly—don't get stepped on!"
In a wave of terror, the player-creatures scattered like rabid dogs across the open plain. In a single stride spanning miles, Xu Zhi traversed their tiny world, leaving them in frantic flight. He reappeared on his porch clutching a blue lunchbox and resumed eating fried eggs, carrots, and bok choy—simple farm fare that tasted heavenly.
Watching them hide in the woods, Xu Zhi felt a spark of inspiration: if he could evolve himself from a spore like any other player, he could legitimately enter the mini‑sandbox world and then return at will. This realization electrified him: the small sandbox had proven invaluable, offering unexpected insights and opportunities.
Finishing his meal, Xu Zhi prepared to test the idea. Moments later, a system notification flashed in his mind:
"Game entering emergency maintenance—logging out in three seconds."
He swallowed the last bite of his lunch, heart pounding with anticipation. Soon he would become a spore, evolve within his own creation, and unlock the ultimate shortcut into the sandbox universe—gaining the ability to traverse between worlds as easily as any player in his own revolutionary experiment.